Enriching faith and family

Gospel Reading and Thoughts for November 15, 2015

Gospel – Mark 13:24-32

Jesus said to his disciples:
“In those days after that tribulation
the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light,
and the stars will be falling from the sky,
and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.

“And then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in the clouds’
with great power and glory,
and then he will send out the angels
and gather his elect from the four winds,
from the end of the earth to the end of the sky.

“Learn a lesson from the fig tree.
When its branch becomes tender and sprouts leaves,
you know that summer is near.
In the same way, when you see these things happening,
know that he is near, at the gates.
Amen, I say to you,
this generation will not pass away
until all these things have taken place.
Heaven and earth will pass away,
but my words will not pass away.

“But of that day or hour, no one knows,
neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”

Doomsday predictors have been around since before Christ and long since after. I remember when I was in junior high, the world was supposed to end the day before I turned 14. My friends and I joked that if the world didn’t end, we’d celebrate by having a pizza party sleepover for my birthday! Movies and books have portrayed how the apocalypse could occur while some take drastic measures to squirrel away supplies in a well-hidden bunker. Yet, nothing we can do could prepare us for the end of the world in the style that Hollywood portrays it. The coming of Christ, on the other hand, we can prepare for. We’ve heard the cliché that life is short and we should take advantage of every moment we’ve been given. However cliché, it is still true. We should have our own souls ready for whenever our life ends and we meet our Savior. We should never leave words undone, cheeks unkissed, hugs left empty. We should never let sins weigh on our souls for long nor let others’ wrongdoings change our own attitudes. We should live selflessly every moment of every day. Living for others in great love, will make our lives easier to give up when we meet our one true Love!